As compelling as this compilation of lush, soft-edged electronic droners is, the attention it draws to the subgenre it is named for prompts more questions than answers. Where does pop ambient stop and new age start? There is a marked similarity between many of the gorgeous songs presented here (Pass Into Silence's "Blue;" The Orb's "Falkenbruck") and the work new age poster boy Kitaro was producing more than two decades ago. There are, of course, more contemporary analogs: DJ Koze's "Hummell" is similar to songs on Tim Hecker's Haunt Me, Haunt Me, Haunt Me, Do It Again.

So why is this minimalist genre so captivating? It isn't the beat: Percussion does not bother to clock in for work until the compilation's fourth selection, Triola's "Mondlied," and it doesn't stick around long. Perhaps it is the simplicity: GAS's "Pop" repeats and layers the same handful of expansive chords over the sound of digitized running water for more than eight minutes and you never want it to end. Not surprisingly, the inherent gentleness of pop ambient makes this compilation (the fifth of its kind that Cologne-based Kompakt has released in five years) especially cohesive, as the tracks float by like a series of warm waves breaking with luxurious idleness. Perhaps it is best not to question the genre, when it is much easier to succumb to its charms.

Jay Breitling
March 31, 2005